[ RadSafe ] International Symposium on Trends in Radiopharmaceuticals

[Marcel Schouwenburg]

International Symposium on Trends in Radiopharmaceuticals
14 - 18 November 2005
Vienna, Austria

Announcement and Call for Papers
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1. INTRODUCTION

Radiopharmaceuticals, along with imaging instrumentation, are the pillars
that support the edifice of clinical nuclear medicine and the former is
the major driver enabling investigations of molecular phenomena for better
understanding of human disease and developing effective treatments. The
growth of nuclear medicine has been intimately linked to availability of
new radioisotopes and the discovery of new radiopharmaceuticals. The field
of radiopharmaceuticals has witnessed continuous evolution thanks to the
immense contributions of scientists from diverse disciplines such as
radiochemistry, inorganic chemistry, organic chemistry, biochemistry,
physiology and pharmacology. Several milestones can be cited in the
trajectory of this growth, which include continuing development of a
plethora of 99mTc radiopharmaceuticals, automated synthesis of 18F
labelled compounds, labelled peptides for accurate mapping of metastasis
and the advances in radionuclide therapy. The International Symposium on
Trends in Radiopharmaceuticals, ISTR-2005, under the auspices of
International Atomic Energy Agency, will provide scientists and
professionals working in the field of radiopharmaceuticals and related
sciences an opportunity to review the exciting developments in the field.
The International Atomic Energy Agency has been organizing such Symposia
on Radiopharmaceuticals since 1973 and the last one was held in Lisbon,
Portugal, in 1998.

2. BACKGROUND

The field of technetium radiopharmaceutical chemistry has grown at an
accelerated pace in the last decade thanks to new chemistries such as the
nitrido, carbonyl and hynic together with the synthesis of several novel
ligands fitting to these chemistries. These pioneering studies are making
the anthropogenic element technetium the most explored metal ion for its
complexation behaviour. Several new 99mTc radiopharmaceuticals continue to
be developed, aiming for greater efficacy in exploring biochemistry in
vivo and introducing accuracy of diagnosis of metastatic cancer to lead to
greater objectivity in medical decisions.

The cyclotron, originally developed for nuclear physics research, has been
simplified for the benefit of increasing medical applications, being the
ideal source for many short-lived, neutron-deficient radioisotopes, and is
today a versatile tool in the hands of the radiopharmaceutical scientists.
There is a significant growth in the installation of new cyclotrons to
cater to the production of radionuclides for medical applications and
interesting developments are taking place through the development of
better cyclotron targetry, radiochemical processing methods and automated
chemistry modules. The short half-life of most of these radioisotopes
makes it essential that the process be automated, starting from
irradiation all the way to the final dispensing stage, such that the final
radiopharmaceutical formulation is compliant with the codes of Good
Manufacturing Practices (cGMP). There is a continuing need to evolve
appropriate guidelines of cGMP for radiopharmaceuticals, due to the
conflicting requirements for handling radioactivity and formulating
products for intravenous administration.

The most spectacular development is undoubtedly the advances in the
synthesis of 18F labelled fluoro deoxy glucose (FDG), opening a new avenue
in nuclear medicine, namely the regular clinical use of positron emission
tomography (PET). Initially developed for studying glucose metabolism in
vivo, especially to map the regional cerebral functions under various
conditions, today 18FDG is the most useful clinical PET tracer for the
detection, staging, treatment planning and management of cancer. Research
into other 18F labelled molecules, including peptides and agents for
tracking gene therapy, has resulted in several new radiopharmaceuticals.
The quest for newer and more specific 18F labelled radiopharmaceuticals
keeps PET chemists busy the world over. The work on other short-lived PET
radionuclides, mainly 11C and to a lesser extent 15O, is also continuing,
despite the logistical problems due to their short half-lives.

The radiohalogens play a pivotal role in the growth of nuclear medicine by
the continued use of iodine isotopes such as 131I, 123I, 124I for
diagnosis and therapy. Strategies to increase the availability of 123I
products are important for clinical nuclear medicine practices. The
bromine and astatine isotopes are being vigorously explored for
establishing their utility in clinical nuclear medicine. The use of the
short-lived SPECT isotopes such as 201Tl, 111In and 67Ga is continuing to
grow for diagnostic imaging starting from myocardial studies to tumour and
infection imaging.

One of the challenges in the coming years will be to take advantage of the
potentials of radiolabelled peptides to formulate clinically useful
radiopharmaceuticals. Peptide receptors have been found to represent
excellent targets for in vivo cancer diagnosis and therapy.

Recent in vitro studies have shown that many cancers can over-express not
just one but several peptide receptors concomitantly. This presents a
basis for starting and/or optimizing the in vivo targeting of tumours by
selecting suitable radiopeptides initially for tumour diagnosis and later
with appropriate radionuclides for therapy as well.

In addition, nuclear medicine is being transformed from a non-invasive
diagnostic methodology to a powerful therapeutic modality. There continues
to be growth in the use of 131I for cost effective treatment of
hyperthyroidism and metastatic thyroid cancer. Radiopharmaceuticals such
as 89SrCl2, 153Sm-EDTMP and 186Re-HEDP are increasingly used in many
centres as cost effective bone pain palliative agents. The use of
131I-mIBG and 131I/188Re labelled lipiodol continues to attract attention,
with growing medical interest in neuro-endocrine tumours and extensive
difficulties with liver cancer, respectively. There is great excitement in
the prospect of very specific therapeutic targeting with radiolabelled
peptides with radionuclides such as 90Y, 186/188Re and 177Lu. Generator
produced radionuclides offer a new dimension to availability of
therapeutic radiopharmaceuticals. Non-conventional applications include
synoviorthesis using radiopharmaceuticals labelled with beta particle
emitting radioisotopes to improve the quality of life of patients
suffering from rheumatoid arthritis. Intravascular radionuclide therapy
(IVRNT) for prevention of arterial restenosis post-percutaneous
transluminal coronary angioplasty (PTCA) is an attractive alternative to
drug eluting stents.

While surgery remains the most effective method for managing cancer,
radiopharmaceuticals play a useful role there too, being the preferred
markers for identifying metastatic lymph nodes and helping surgeons to
achieve better precision in tumour mass excision. Accordingly, a new
modality, radioguided surgery (RIGS), is emerging for use in the operating
theatre.

The major constituent of a radiopharmaceutical is the radionuclide and the
search for new radionuclides to improve the availability of diagnostic and
therapeutic radiopharmaceuticals is continuing. Several metallic isotopes
such as 60/61/62Cu, 68Ga, 86Y and 94Tc are emerging for PET studies. In
view of the promising advances in targeted therapy for cancer management,
the need for therapeutic radioisotopes is expected to grow manifold.
Internalized targeted therapy can be highly specific in its ability to
deliver radiation dose to the tumour and hence, when the potential of
targeted therapy is fully realized, the demand for radioisotopes for this
modality will be huge. Keeping this in mind, radionuclides that can be
produced in abundant quantity are being explored. 90Y, the daughter of the
long-lived fission product 90Sr, and 177Lu, which can be produced by (n,ã)
activation of 176Lu, are the two isotopes which can meet such large
demands. Efforts are being made to develop new production routes and
radiochemical processing methods, as well as radionuclide generator
technologies, to effectively bridge the gap between demand and supply.

A review of the radiopharmaceuticals field would be incomplete without a
discussion about centralized radiopharmacy practices. There is a
continuing need to formulate radiopharmaceuticals cost effectively and to
a high standard of consistent quality. There is need for improvements in
the systems for dispensing of PET and therapeutic radiopharmaceuticals.
This symposium will focus on practices and facilities for greater
pharmaceutical safety and better radiation hygiene.

The exciting developments in all the above areas in the
radiopharmaceuticals field are contributing to transforming nuclear
medicine to a preferred modality for diagnosis and therapy of many
diseases not only in developed countries but also in most developing
nations.

3. TOPICS

The symposium will cover developments in the entire spectrum of
radiopharmaceuticals chemistry, including radionuclide production,
radiochemical processing, manufacturing and quality control of
radiopharmaceuticals, latest advances in radiopharmaceuticals research,
GMP and regulatory aspects, etc.

The IAEA welcomes high quality contributions on the following topics.

Radionuclide production and synthesis of radiopharmaceuticals

Novel technetium chemistry and radiopharmaceuticals

Flourine-18 and iodine-123 based radiopharmaceuticals and automation of
synthesis

Other radiohalogens and metallic nuclides for PET

Carbon-11 radiopharmaceuticals and other short-lived PET tracers

Therapeutic radiopharmaceuticals

Molecular biology based radiopharmaceuticals

Pharmacology and dosimetry of radiopharmaceuticals

Codes of GMP for radiopharmaceuticals

Centralized radiopharmacies

Regulatory aspects

Indigenous capacity building in radiopharmaceuticals

It is expected that the symposium will stimulate international exchange of
information and ideas that will contribute to further enhancing the growth
of developmental opportunities in nuclear medicine in general and in
radiopharmaceutical chemistry in particular.

4. PAPERS AND POSTERS

Concise papers on issues falling within the topics outlined in Section 3
above may be submitted as contributions to the symposium. All papers,
apart from invited review papers, must present original work; they should
not have been published elsewhere.

(a) Submission of synopses

Persons who wish to present a paper or poster at the symposium must submit
an extended synopsis (in English) together with the completed Form for
Submission of a Paper (Form B) and the Participation Form (Form A) to the
competent national authority for official transmission to the IAEA in time
for them to be received by the IAEA by 31 May 2005. In addition, the
synopsis should be sent electronically to the Scientific Secretariat,
email: istr2005 at iaea.org .

The specifications and instructions for preparing the synopsis and how to
use the synopsis template are given in the attached “Instructions on how
to prepare the extended synopsis and how to submit it electronically”.
Attached to this announcement is a sample extended synopsis.

The synopsis will be considered by the Programme Committee only if the
Participation Form A and Paper Submission Form B have been received by the
IAEA through the official governmental channels.

(b) Acceptance of papers/posters

Authors will be informed whether their paper has been accepted by the
Programme Committee on the basis of the extended synopsis submitted. At
the same time authors will be advised if their paper has been accepted for
oral presentation or for presentation as a poster. Furthermore, they will
receive guidelines for the preparation of papers and will be informed of
the deadlines for their submission, the assigned paper number and the
session of presentation. The accepted synopses will be reproduced in
unedited form in the Book of Extended Synopses.

(c) Proceedings

It is intended to publish papers presented at the symposium in a special
issue of an international journal (subject to peer review). Further
details will be provided after the extended synopses have been reviewed.

The IAEA reserves the right to refuse the presentation or publication of
any paper that does not meet the expectations raised by the information
originally given in the extended synopsis.

5. PARTICIPATION

All persons wishing to participate in the symposium must send a completed
Participation Form (Form A) to the competent official authority (Ministry
of Foreign Affairs or national atomic energy authority) for subsequent
transmission to the IAEA. A participant will be accepted only if the
Participation Form is transmitted through the competent official authority
of a Member State of the IAEA or by an organization invited to
participate.

Participants whose official nomination has been received by the IAEA will
receive further information on the symposium approximately two to three
months before the meeting. This information will also be posted on the
symposium web page:

http://www-pub.iaea.org/MTCD/Meetings/Announcements.asp?ConfID=130

6. EXPENDITURES

No registration fee is charged to participants.

As a general rule, the IAEA does not pay for participants’ travel and
living expenses. However, limited funds are available to help meet the
cost of attendance of selected specialists, mainly those from developing
countries with low economic resources. Generally not more than one travel
grant may be awarded to any one country. Persons wishing to apply for a
travel grant must send the Grant Application Form C — typewritten or
clearly printed — through their appropriate government authority (see
Section 10), together with the Participation Form and, if relevant, the
Form for Submission of a Paper, to reach the IAEA at the latest by 31 May
2005. Incomplete or late applications will not be considered. The grants
will be lump sums usually covering only part of the cost of attendance.

7. EXHIBITION

A limited amount of space will be available for commercial vendors’
displays/exhibits during the symposium. Interested parties should contact
the Scientific Secretariat.

8. WORKING LANGUAGE

The working language of the meeting will be English. All communications,
synopses, abstracts and papers must be sent to the IAEA in English.

9. DISTRIBUTION OF DOCUMENTS

A preliminary programme of the symposium will be sent to the participants
before the meeting.

The final programme and the Book of Extended Synopses will be distributed
at registration.

10. ACCOMMODATION

Detailed information on accommodation and other items will be sent
directly to all designated participants approximately two to three months
before the meeting.

11. VISA

Designated participants who require a visa to enter Austria should submit
the necessary application to the nearest diplomatic or consular
representative of Austria as soon as possible. Please note that Austria is
a Schengen State and therefore persons who require a visa will have to
apply for a ‘Schengen visa’ at least 14 days before entry into Austria. In
States where Austria has no diplomatic mission, visas can be obtained from
the consular authority of a Schengen Partner State representing Austria in
the country in question. At present the Schengen States are: Austria,
Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Iceland, Italy,
Luxembourg, Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Spain and Sweden.

12. CHANNELS OF COMMUNICATION

The Participation Form (Form A), the Form for Submission of a Paper (Form
B), together with two copies of each synopsis, and, if applicable, the
Grant Application Form (Form C), should be sent to the competent official
authority (Ministry of Foreign Affairs or national atomic energy
authority) for transmission to the IAEA.

Subsequent correspondence on scientific matters should be sent to the
Scientific Secretaries and correspondence on administrative matters to the
IAEA Conference Services Section.

13. SYMPOSIUM WEB PAGE

Please visit the IAEA symposium web page regularly for new information
regarding this symposium:
http://www-pub.iaea.org/MTCD/Meetings/Announcements.asp?ConfID=130.

14. SYMPOSIUM SECRETARIAT

Scientific Secretariat of the Conference:

Mr. M.R.A. Pillai
Division of Physical and Chemical Sciences
International Atomic Energy Agency
P.O. Box 100
Wagramer Strasse 5
A-1400 Vienna, Austria

Telephone No.:  (+43 1) 2600 21746
Telefax No.:  (+43 1) 2600 7
E-mail:  m.r.a.pillai at iaea.org
E-mail address for paper submission:  Istr2005 at iaea.org

Mr. K. K. Solanki
Division of Human Health
International Atomic Energy Agency
P.O. Box 100
Wagramer Strasse 5
A-1400 Vienna, Austria

Telephone No.:  (+43 1) 2600 21676
Telefax No.:  (+43 1) 2600 7
E-mail:  k.solanki at iaea.org

Administration and organization:

Ms. R. Perricos
Division of Conference and Document Services
Conference Service Section
IAEA-CN-130
International Atomic Energy Agency
P.O. Box 100
Wagramer Strasse 5
A-1400 Vienna, Austria

Telephone No.:
Telefax No.:
E-mail:  R.Perricos at iaea.org

Ms. K. Morrison
Division of Conference and Document Services
Conference Service Section
IAEA-CN-130
International Atomic Energy Agency
P.O. Box 100
Wagramer Strasse 5
A-1400 Vienna, Austria

Telephone No.:
Telefax No.:
E-mail:  K.Morrison at iaea.org

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Marcel Schouwenburg
RadSafe moderator & listowner